The mountain · The temple of water

Jambukeswarar, Thiruvanaikaval: the temple of water

The temple of water among the five elements ~ where Shiva's lingam is forever surrounded by a spring welling up from beneath the earth, and where an elephant and a spider once worshipped. Arunachala's cooling, elemental opposite.

Add hero image ~ /images/articles/jambukeswarar-thiruvanaikaval-water-temple-hero.jpg

← Part of The Mountain

The temple of water among the five elements stands at Thiruvanaikaval, near Tiruchirapalli ~ the Jambukeswarar temple, where Shiva is worshipped as the element of water (appu) in a lingam perpetually surrounded by a spring that rises from beneath the earth. It is one of the most atmospheric of the five, its innermost sanctum always damp, always cool, water welling up around the Lord ~ and its story, of an elephant and a spider who both worshipped here, is among the most charming in the tradition.

Shiva as water

At Jambukeswarar, Shiva is the Appu Lingam ~ the lingam of water. The sanctum sits below ground level, and an underground spring keeps the lingam perpetually surrounded by water; even when drained, the water wells up again, so that the Lord is always seen amid the element he embodies. The tradition holds that the lingam was worshipped by the Goddess herself here ~ Parvati, as Akhilandeswari, is the presiding Goddess, and the temple is one of the most important centres of her worship, so much so that here, unusually, the Goddess is given at least equal prominence with Shiva, and a daily ritual enacts Shiva instructing her.

The elephant and the spider

The temple takes its name and its most beloved story from two devoted creatures. Tradition tells of a white elephant and a spider who both worshipped the Shiva lingam here in a previous age. The elephant (in Tamil, anai ~ giving the place its name, Thiru-anai-kaval) worshipped by bringing water from the river and bathing the lingam, and by strewing it with flowers. The spider worshipped by spinning a web above the lingam, to shield it from falling leaves and the sun. Each, in his devotion, undid the other’s worship ~ the elephant washing away the spider’s web as impurity, the spider’s web offending the elephant ~ and the two came into conflict. In the end both attained grace through their sincere devotion, and the story is remembered as a parable of how the same pure love may take utterly different forms, each valid, each dear to the Lord. The temple’s name, Jambukeswarar, comes from a later age when a sage worshipped here beneath a jambu (rose-apple) tree.

An elephant and a spider each worshipped the Lord in his own way, and each undid the other’s worship ~ a parable of how one pure love may take utterly different forms.

Water and fire

For the pilgrim of Arunachala, the temple of water makes an evocative counterpart to the temple of fire ~ water and fire, the two most vivid opposites among the elements, the cooling spring and the burning hill. Where Arunachala is dry, high, blazing, a mountain of fire under the open sky, Jambukeswarar is low, damp, cool, its Lord forever surrounded by welling water in a shadowed sanctum. The two hold opposite poles of the elemental world, and to stand in each is to feel that opposition in the body. Thiruvanaikaval lies near Tiruchirapalli (Trichy), roughly 3–4 hours from Tiruvannamalai. See the five element temples for the whole scheme.

Last updated 19 February 2026. Following the documented record preserved by Sri Ramanasramam and his devotees; where an account is traditional, it is told as such.